Razor blade sharpener



Dec. 2, 1941. F. wlER'rH 2,265,050

RAZOR BLADE HARPENER Filed sept. 19, 1940 l .FIZ-@.. 37

Patented Dec. 2, 1941 i UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER Frederick Wierth, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application September 19, 1940, Serial No. 357,379

Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in devices for sharpening razor blades.

It is the object of the invention to improve the construction and mode of operation of razor blade Sharpeners and so to construct such devices that a better sharpening operation will result.

A feature of the invention resides in a new and novel method of mounting a pair of honing cylinders whereby a highly effective honing engagement between the honing cylinders and a blade being sharpened, is obtained.

Another feature of the invention resides in a novel construction of holder for mounting the blade to be sharpened in operative relation to the honing cylinders.

A further feature of the invention resides in a novel mounting of the honing cylinders whereby they yieldingly engage the blade to be sharpened during the sharpening operation.

Still another feature of the invention resides in a novel means for effecting operation of the honing cylinders.

The foregoing and other objects will become apparent as the nature of the invention is better understood by reference to the following specification and drawing, in which latter:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of a razor blade Sharpener constructed in accordance with the present invention,

Figure 2 is a View in side elevation thereof,

Figure 3 is a view in end elevation thereof,

Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view with the blade holder removed,

Figure 5 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale taken substantially on the line 5 5 of Figure 3,

Figure 6- is a fragmentary end view partly broken away, the view being on an enlarged scale, and;

Figure- 7 is a detail sectional View on an enlarged scale taken substantially on the line 'I-I of Figure 3.

In the embodiment of the invention herein illustrated, the reference character IIJ designates a base or stand upon which the device may be mounted and supported in operative position.

The reference character II designates bearing members of which there are two and these bearing members are rigidly mounted in spaced relation to each other upon a spacing plate I2 which also forms the means for mounting them upon the base I0, it being secured thereto by means of screws or the like I3.

The two bearing members II are of the same construction and the description of one will therefore suice. Each bearing member is provided near its upper end portion upon its inner face with a projecting lug I4 which serves to attach a blade holder I5 in position between the bearing members and the construction of the blade holder and the manner of its removable attachment to the bearing members will be hereinafter more fully described.

As illustrated in Figure 5 of the drawing, the bearing member II is cut out upon its inner face to provide an elongated recess I6. As shown in Figure 7, the recess I6 has a channel I'I in its top wall and a depending ilange like extension I8 and an upwardly extending flange like extension I9, the ange like extensions I8 and I9 being spaced from each other as illustrated in Figure 7. Spaced from the bottom wall 20 of the recess I6, there is a honing cylinder supporting track 2I. This honing cylinder supporting track 2| is resilient and as illustrated in Figure 6, consists of a spring 22, the ends 23 of which are turned under the body portion to form supporting feet for the track and to support it in position by engagement with the end walls of a raised portion 24 upon the bottom wall 20 of the recess I6.

The honing cylinders are designated 25 and there are preferably two operatively connected together in such a manner that they are caused to operate in unison in a manner to be hereinafter described.

The honing cylinders are provided upon their surface with a suitable abrading material and near each end, the honing cylinders are formed with enlarged portions 26 which form rollers for mounting the honing cylinders upon the resilient supporting tracks 2l. 'I'he upper edges 21 of the recesses I6, form guide tracks for the rollers 26 upon the upper sides thereof as best illustrated in Figure '7 and closely adjacent its enlarged end portions 26 each honing cylinder has a gear 28 which is of slightly smaller diameter than the adjacent enlarged portion of its respective honing cylinder.

Bearing plates 30 in which the honing cylinders are rotatably mounted, are employed to connect the honing cylinders together at their ends, and these bearing plates have sliding engagement between the ange portions I8 and I9. The bearing plates are provided with spaced openings to receive reduced extensions 3| upon the ends of the honing cylinders and are retained in position between the flanges I8 and I9 by cap or cover plates 32.

trackways 22 and gives, in effect, a floating ac-v tion to the honing cylinders.

Means is provided to reciprocate the honin cylinders as a single unit and to impart individual rotary movement thereto and thismans com? prises two rack bars 35 which are connectedat one end by means of an operating handle or grip 36. The opposite end of each rack bar may be provided with a stop 3l preferably in the form of an angular projection as best illustrated in Figure 3.

lThe rack bars are mounted for reciprocating movement in the bearing members I I, they being slidably mounted in the recesses IG of their respective bearing members II, with their rack teeth in operative engagement with the teeth of their respective gears 28.

To reciprocate the rack bars, the handle or grip 36 is grasped to move them in their recesses, movement of the rack bars. in one direction is limited by engagement of the handle or grip 36 with one of the sides of the bearing members and in the other direction by engagement of the stops 31 with the opposite sides of the bearing members. VProjecting inwardly from each of thebearing members II, there is a rigid plate 4i). rIhe inner ends of these plates are spaced with respect to each other and each plate has a slot 4I extending inwardly thereof. Mounted in each of the'slots 4I, there are two resilient guide members 42 which serve to guide a blade to be sharpened into position in the slots 4! of the plates 43. The resilient guide members are mounted in the bearing members II by means of resilient extensions 44 as best illustrated in Figure 7.

The blade holder I comprises a rigid bar 45 upon each end of which there is a resilient clasping member 46 for engagement with the projects ing lugs i4 of the bearing members I I. Rigidly carried within each of the resilient clasping members 4S, there is a depending abutment member 4l. These abutment members 41 are adapted for engagement with the inner faces of the projecting lugs I4 when the blade holder I5 is in operative position. As best illustrated in Figure 5, there is a rigid plate 50 which is rigidly secured to the main body 45 of the blade holder by a rigid bar 5I, see also Figure 2. Secured to this rigid plate 50, there is a- U-shaped resilient member 52, the ends of the legs of which are bent over the upper edge of therigid plate as illustrated at 53 in Figure 2.

The reference numeral 5D designates a blade to be sharpened and it is retained in the blade holder by the resilient member 52 which clamps the blade between itself and the rigid plate 5G. The resilient member 52 is flexed t0 permit of placement and removal of a blade 60 in the holder by means of a thumb piece 65 which may be grasped together with the rigidbar 5I.

The blade holder is so proportioned that when it is in operative position, the razor blade carried thereby is in such a position that its lower edge,

which is the edge to be sharpened, will be positioned between the honing cylinders as illustrated in Figure 5. In said Figure 5, it will be noted that the blade is in engagement with the right hand honing cylinder and that the operating rack bars are moving to the left in said ligure to rotate the honing cylinders in a counterclockwise direction. As the rack bars reach the end of their stroke, they are moved to the right in Figure 5, rotating the honing cylinders in the clockwise direction and moving the left hand honing cylinder into honing engagement with the blade to be sharpened.

In their movement into engagement with the blade to be sharpened, the honing cylinders roll upon their resilient tracks and the bearing plates 3U have sliding movement in their respective bearing members I I.

As the honing rollers engage the blade to be sharpened, there will obviously be a pressure exerted upon the resilient tracks upon which the honing cylinders are mounted. This pressure tends to flex the resilient tracks which results in a yielding engagement of the honing cylinders with the blade.

The blade is'held in a substantially rigid manner since the plates engage the same at points adjacent the edge being .sharpened thus preventing excessive flexing of the blade under pressure of the honing cylinders.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the present invention provides a new and novel razor blade sharpening device in which the recited objects are accomplished.

The invention has been illustrated in the form of a sharpening device for safety razor blades of the thin flexible type, but it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to use with such blades alone and that the principles thereof may be embodied in devices for sharpening edged tools other thanl razor blades without departing from the spirit thereof.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is:

l. In a blade Sharpener, a base, a bearing member carried by each end of the base, a pair of honing cylinders, a bearing connecting the honing cylinders at each end thereof and maintaining them in spaced relation, means for slidably mounting the honing cylinder bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for yieldingly supporting the honing cylinders and their bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for supporting a blade to be sharpened with its cutting edge between the spaced honing cylinders, and means for moving the honing cylinders alternately into engagement with their respective sides of the blade to be sharpened and for rotating the honing cylinders while in engagement with the blade to'be sharpened.

2. In a blade Sharpener, a base, a bearing member carried by each end of the base, a pair of honing cylinders, a bearing connecting the honing cylinders at each end thereof and maintaining them. in spaced relation, means for slidably mounting the honing cylinder bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for yieldingly supporting the honing cylinders and their bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for supporting a blade to be sharpened with its cutting edge between the spaced honing cylinders, and means for moving the honing cylinders alternately into engagement with their respective sides of the blade to be sharpened and for rotating the honing cylinders while in engagement with the blade to be sharpened, said means including gears carried by the honingrcylinders and a reciprooable rack bar for engagement With said gears.

3. In a blade Sharpener, a base, a bearing member carried by each end of the base, a pair of honing cylinders, a bearing connecting the honing cylinders at each end thereof and maintaining them in spaced relation, means for slidably mounting the honing cylinder bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for yieldingly supporting the honing cylinders and their bearings in the bearing members of the base, means for supporting a blade to be sharpened with its cutting edge between the spaced honing cylinders, and means for moving the honing cylinders alternately into engagement with their respective sides of the blade to be sharpened and for rotating the honing cylinders while in engagement with the blade to be sharpened, said means comprising a gear carried by each end of each of the honing cylinders, and a pair of connected rack bars, each of said rack bars engaging the gears of the honing cylinders at one end thereof.

4. In a blade Sharpener, a base, an upstanding bearing supporting member at each end of the base. a. bearing slidably mounted in each of the bearing supporting members, a plurality of honing cylinders rotatably mounted in the honing cylinder bearings, means for simultaneously reciprocating the honing cylinder bearings and rotating the honing cylinders, and a stationary blade holder removably carried by the upstanding bearing supporting members above the honing cylinders.

5. In a blade Sharpener, a base, an upstanding bearing supporting member at each end of the base, a honing cylinders bearing slidably mounted in each of the bearing supporting members, a plurality of honing cylinders rotatably mounted in the honing cylinder bearings, meansfor simultaneously reciprocating the honing cylinder bearings and rotating the honing cylinders, a blade holder, and means for removably attaching the blade holder to the upstanding bearing supporting members, said means comprising a lug projecting from the inner face of each of the upstanding bearing supporting members, and resilient means carried by the blade holder for removable engagement With said lugs.

FREDERICK WI'ERTH. 

